# Great Britain at the Paralympics
**Great Britain at the Paralympics** refers to the performances of the team organized by the [British Paralympic Association](https://www.edgepedia.org/british-paralympic-association) (ParalympicsGB), which fields British athletes at the summer and winter [Paralympic Games](https://www.edgepedia.org/paralympic-games). The team has been one of the strongest in the movement: at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games it finished second in the medal table with 49 gold, 44 silver, and 31 bronze medals, a total of 124, behind only China[1](https://www.paralympic.org/paris-2024-paralympic-games/results/medalstandings). Great Britain has finished second in the summer medal table at every Paralympics this century except London 2012, where it finished third[2](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/c4gq1qwwev5o).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Governing body | British Paralympic Association, 101 New Cavendish Street, London; president Nick Webborn[3](https://www.paralympic.org/npc/great-britain) |
| Paris 2024 | Second place: 49 gold, 44 silver, 31 bronze, 124 total, behind China (94 gold, 221 total)[1](https://www.paralympic.org/paris-2024-paralympic-games/results/medalstandings) |
| Summer record this century | Second in the medal table at every summer Games except London 2012, where the team was third[2](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/c4gq1qwwev5o) |
| Tokyo 2020 | Second with 124 medals (41 gold), behind China's 96 golds[4](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/olympics/paralympics/tokyo-medal-table-results-2021-gb-b1913009.html) |
| Paris 2024 squad | 215 athletes competed in 19 sports and won medals in 18, meeting the UK Sport target of 100-140 medals[2](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/c4gq1qwwev5o) |
| Winter record | Modest by summer standards: one medal (silver, Neil Simpson and guide Rob Poth) at Milano Cortina 2026 and 1 gold, 1 silver, 4 bronze at Beijing 2022[5](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/ce3g6d5rxw5o) • [3](https://www.paralympic.org/npc/great-britain) |
| Funding | UK Sport invested £385 million of Exchequer and Lottery funds into success at the Paris Olympics and Paralympics[6](https://hansard.parliament.uk/pdf/commons/2024-10-10) |
## Summer Games record
Great Britain's summer results have been consistently strong since 2000. At Beijing 2008 the team won 42 gold, 29 silver, and 31 bronze medals[3](https://www.paralympic.org/npc/great-britain). At the home London 2012 Games it won 34 gold, 43 silver, and 43 bronze, finishing third in a table topped by China[3](https://www.paralympic.org/npc/great-britain). At Rio 2016 the team returned to second place with 64 gold, 39 silver, and 44 bronze[3](https://www.paralympic.org/npc/great-britain).
At Tokyo 2020, held in 2021, Great Britain again finished runner-up with a total of 124 medals, 41 of them gold, while China's 96 golds kept it well clear at the top[4](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/olympics/paralympics/tokyo-medal-table-results-2021-gb-b1913009.html) • [7](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/sports/article/2024/08/28/paris-2024-why-china-wins-every-paralympic-games_6722581_9.html). The Tokyo total was four medals more than the team had won at the home London Games[8](https://www.independent.co.uk/independentpremium/editors-letters/paralympic-games-tokyo-medals-gb-b1914666.html), and during those Games Great Britain recorded its 1,000th Olympic and Paralympic medal since the introduction of National Lottery funding[8](https://www.independent.co.uk/independentpremium/editors-letters/paralympic-games-tokyo-medals-gb-b1914666.html).
**Paris 2024.** A 215-strong squad competed across 19 sports and won medals in 18 of them, comfortably achieving the UK Sport target of 100 to 140 medals and finishing second behind China[2](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/c4gq1qwwev5o). In athletics alone Great Britain took 6 gold, 8 silver, and 4 bronze medals, ranking eighth in that sport's table[9](https://www.paralympic.org/paris-2024-paralympic-games/results/athletics/medalstandings). Swimmer and cyclist [Sarah Storey](https://www.edgepedia.org/sarah-storey) delivered a record-extending 19th Paralympic gold medal with a sprint-finish win in the road race[10](https://www.the-independent.com/sport/olympics/paralympics/paralympics-great-britain-medals-poppy-maskill-b2609118.html). The delegation included 46 percent women, a figure the British Paralympic movement's leadership linked to its long-standing equity policies[11](https://www.lemonde.fr/sport/article/2024/09/07/jeux-paralympiques-en-matiere-de-parite-l-equipe-de-france-est-encore-loin-du-podium_6306499_3242.html).
## Winter Games
Great Britain's winter record is far smaller than its summer one. At Beijing 2022 the team won 1 gold, 1 silver, and 4 bronze[3](https://www.paralympic.org/npc/great-britain). At the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games, Britain won a single medal, a silver, won by the visually impaired skier Neil Simpson with his guide Rob Poth[5](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/ce3g6d5rxw5o). A mix of injuries and an inexperienced squad, in which 17 of the 25 athletes were making their debut, fell short of the UK Sport medal range of two to five[5](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/ce3g6d5rxw5o). The Games still marked firsts for the team: Nina Sparks became Great Britain's first female snowboarder at a Paralympics, and English athletes competed in the curling rinks, usually an all-Scottish affair, for the first time[5](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/ce3g6d5rxw5o).
## Funding and organization
The team's results are closely tied to public funding. After the UK won the London 2012 bid in 2005, the Government announced an additional £200 million of Exchequer funding in March 2006, and a significant increase in elite funding is evident from 2006/07[12](https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a757b49ed915d6faf2b3549/Report_5_Sport_Evidence_Base_FINAL.pdf). For the Paris cycle, UK Sport invested £385 million of Exchequer and Lottery funds into Olympic and Paralympic success, with the British Olympic Association and ParalympicsGB responsible for preparing the teams[6](https://hansard.parliament.uk/pdf/commons/2024-10-10). UK Sport's performance chief, Dr Kate Baker, has noted that more nations are investing in Paralympic sport, which raises the bar for bringing younger athletes through[10](https://www.the-independent.com/sport/olympics/paralympics/paralympics-great-britain-medals-poppy-maskill-b2609118.html).
## Britain's Paralympic and Olympic standing compared
Great Britain performs relatively better at the Paralympics than at the Olympics. An analysis of medal shares found a British Paralympic medal share of 7.88 percent against an Olympic share of 6.76 percent[13](https://eprints.lse.ac.uk/48603/1/blogs.lse.ac.uk-Differences_between_the_Olympic_and_Paralympic_medal_tables_may_tell_us_something_about_the_presence_.pdf). At Paris 2024 the United States led the [Olympic medal table](https://www.edgepedia.org/olympic-medal-table) but matched only its third-place Paralympic finish from Tokyo, while Great Britain held second place in the Paralympic table[2](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/c4gq1qwwev5o).
## References
1. [Paris 2024 Paralympic Games - Medal Standings, International Paralympic Committee](https://www.paralympic.org/paris-2024-paralympic-games/results/medalstandings)
2. [Paris 2024 Paralympics: Best stats as GB win medals in 18 out of 19 sports, BBC Sport](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/c4gq1qwwev5o)
3. [Great Britain NPC profile, International Paralympic Committee](https://www.paralympic.org/npc/great-britain)
4. [Paralympics medal table: Who won Tokyo 2020?, The Independent](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/olympics/paralympics/tokyo-medal-table-results-2021-gb-b1913009.html)
5. [Winter Paralympics 2026: Great Britain win just one medal but bright future ahead, BBC Sport](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/ce3g6d5rxw5o)
6. [Sport: Team GB and ParalympicsGB, Hansard, House of Commons, 10 October 2024](https://hansard.parliament.uk/pdf/commons/2024-10-10)
7. [Paris 2024: Why China wins every Paralympic Games, Le Monde](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/sports/article/2024/08/28/paris-2024-why-china-wins-every-paralympic-games_6722581_9.html)
8. [The Paralympic Games have been spectacular, The Independent](https://www.independent.co.uk/independentpremium/editors-letters/paralympic-games-tokyo-medals-gb-b1914666.html)
9. [Paris 2024 Paralympic Games - Athletics - Medal Standings, International Paralympic Committee](https://www.paralympic.org/paris-2024-paralympic-games/results/athletics/medalstandings)
10. [The success of Great Britain's Paralympics cannot be measured in medals alone, The Independent](https://www.the-independent.com/sport/olympics/paralympics/paralympics-great-britain-medals-poppy-maskill-b2609118.html)
11. [Jeux paralympiques : en matière de parité, l'équipe de France est encore loin du podium, Le Monde](https://www.lemonde.fr/sport/article/2024/09/07/jeux-paralympiques-en-matiere-de-parite-l-equipe-de-france-est-encore-loin-du-podium_6306499_3242.html)
12. [2012 Games evaluation, Report 5: Sport Evidence Base, UK Government](https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a757b49ed915d6faf2b3549/Report_5_Sport_Evidence_Base_FINAL.pdf)
13. [Differences between the Olympic and Paralympic medal tables, LSE British Politics and Policy](https://eprints.lse.ac.uk/48603/1/blogs.lse.ac.uk-Differences_between_the_Olympic_and_Paralympic_medal_tables_may_tell_us_something_about_the_presence_.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Olympics and multisport subjects › General sport and multisport institutions › Alternative and community multisport Games › Inclusion, community, and identity-based Games › IWAS World Games*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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